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The use of PET in Alzheimer disease

Nature Reviews Neurology volume 6, pages 78–87 (2010)Cite this article

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Abstract

In Alzheimer disease (AD), which is the most common cause of dementia, the underlying disease pathology most probably precedes the onset of cognitive symptoms by many years. Thus, efforts are underway to find early diagnostic markers as well as disease-modifying treatments for this disorder. PET enables various brain systems to be monitored in living individuals. In patients with AD, PET can be used to investigate changes in cerebral glucose metabolism, various neurotransmitter systems, neuroinflammation, and the protein aggregates that are characteristic of the disease, notably the amyloid deposits. These investigations are helping to further our understanding of the complex pathophysiological mechanisms that underlie AD, as well as aiding the early and differential diagnosis of the disease in the clinic. In the future, PET studies will also be useful for identifying new therapeutic targets and monitoring treatment outcomes. Amyloid imaging could be useful as early diagnostic marker of AD and for selecting patients for anti-amyloid-β therapy, while cerebral glucose metabolism could be a suitable PET marker for monitoring disease progression. For the near future, multitracer PET studies are unlikely to be used routinely in the clinic for AD, being both burdensome and expensive; however, such studies are very informative in a research context.

Key Points

  • PET studies facilitate the clinical differentiation between Alzheimer disease (AD) and other types of dementia

  • Monitoring cerebral glucose metabolism or amyloid deposition by PET could provide diagnostic accuracy in early cognitive impairment

  • PET amyloid imaging permits the early detection of patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment—individuals who have a high risk of developing AD

  • The glucose analog 2-[18F]-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose can be used in PET studies to monitor the clinical progression of AD

  • PET amyloid imaging has the potential to be used for selecting appropriate patients for future anti-amyloid-β therapies

  • Multitracer PET studies further our understanding of the underlying pathological disease processes in AD and the relationship between such pathology and the cognitive impairment exhibited by patients

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Figure 1: A multitracer PET study in Alzheimer disease.
Figure 2: Chemical structures of amyloid PET tracers.
Figure 3: Amyloid imaging in AD.
Figure 4: Fusion images from coregistered PET and MRI scans.
Figure 5: Regional changes in amyloid load and cerebral glucose metabolism.
Figure 6: Time course of events in AD.

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Acknowledgements

A. Nordberg gratefully acknowledges the financial support provided by the following: the Swedish Research Council (project 05817), Stockholm County Council–Karolinska Institute (ALF grant), the Foundation for Old Servants, the Stohne's Foundation, the KI Foundations, the Alzheimer Foundation in Sweden, Swedish Brain Power, the EC-FP6 project DiMI (LSHB-CT-2005-512146 and QLK6-CT-2000-00502), and the Swedish Brain Foundation. Anton Forsberg, Michael Schöll (both Karolinska Institute) and Anders Wall (GE Healthcare, Uppsala, Sweden) are thanked for their help in preparing the figures.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Alzheimer Neurobiology, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institute, Karolinska University Hospital Huddinge, Novum, S-14186, Stockholm, Sweden

    Agneta Nordberg & Ahmadul Kadir

  2. Turku PET Center, University of Turku, Kiinamyllynkatu 4–8, FIN-20520, Turku, Finland

    Juha O. Rinne

  3. Department of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Uppsala University, BMC, Box 576, 75123, Uppsala, Sweden

    Bengt Långström

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  1. Agneta Nordberg
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Correspondence to Agneta Nordberg.

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Nordberg, A., Rinne, J., Kadir, A. et al. The use of PET in Alzheimer disease. Nat Rev Neurol 6, 78–87 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrneurol.2009.217

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